Uploaded January 2024 | Updated September 2026, 15 minutes ago
Every year I run tours to the very north of Norway taking small groups of adventurers well above the arctic circle in the hope of seeing the Northern Lights. As always I try to film this amazing spectacle and over the years as cameras have improved it's become easier and easier to video the Aurora in real time so that what you see in the video matches what you would have seen if you had been there. In the past Aurora footage was almost always shot using long exposures and time lapse which resulted in greatly sped up motion and the loss of many of the fleeting details seen in the Aurora. In this video I give you a bit of behind the scenes look at one of my trips with details of how I shoot the Aurora with the Sony FX3 and also with the FX30. The video was uploaded in HDR so if you have an HDR display you should see it in HDR, if not it will be streamed to you in normal standard dynamic range. The cameras used are Sony's FX3 and FX30. The main lenses are the Sony 24mm f1.4 GM and 20mm f1.8 G but when out and about on the snow scooters I use the Sony 18-105 G power zoom on the FX30 for convenience.
For more information on the tours: xdcam-user.com/northern-lights-expeditions-to-norway
For some tips for shooting in very cold weather: xdcam-user.com/2023/12/filming-in-very-cold-weather
00:00 Introduction
00:27 Real Time Aurora footage
01:04 Travelling up to the cabins in Norway.
02:02 Why I like to film the Northern Lights.
03:05 Which cameras I am using and why
03:20 Why do I use the FX30?
03:50 Sample FX30 footage.
04:15 Using the FX3 to video the Aurora using flexible ISO - not time lapse
05:10 ISO.
05:25 Noise reduction in DaVinci Resolve example
05:39 Lens choices.
05:50 Shutter speed and real time capture.
06:18 Comparing real time with time lapse of the Aurora.
08:00 Using S&Q motion for when the Aurora is less bright.
09:02 Using the FX30 with S&Q motion to shoot a faint Aurora.
09:36 Using the DJI RS2 to add motion to the shots.
10:14 Dealing with the cold and ice.
10:58 Sample Aurora and Northern Lights footage.
Every year I run tours to the very north of Norway taking small groups of adventurers well above the arctic circle in the hope of seeing the Northern Lights. As always I try to film this amazing spectacle and over the years as cameras have improved it's become easier and easier to video the Aurora in real time so that what you see in the video matches what you would have seen if you had been there. In the past Aurora footage was almost always shot using long exposures and time lapse which resulted in greatly sped up motion and the loss of many of the fleeting details seen in the Aurora. In this video I give you a bit of behind the scenes look at one of my trips with details of how I shoot the Aurora with the Sony FX3 and also with the FX30. The video was uploaded in HDR so if you have an HDR display you should see it in HDR, if not it will be streamed to you in normal standard dynamic range. The cameras used are Sony's FX3 and FX30. The main lenses are the Sony 24mm f1.4 GM and 20mm f1.8 G but when out and about on the snow scooters I use the Sony 18-105 G power zoom on the FX30 for convenience.
For more information on the tours: xdcam-user.com/northern-lights-expeditions-to-norway
For some tips for shooting in very cold weather: xdcam-user.com/2023/12/filming-in-very-cold-weather
00:00 Introduction
00:27 Real Time Aurora footage
01:04 Travelling up to the cabins in Norway.
02:02 Why I like to film the Northern Lights.
03:05 Which cameras I am using and why
03:20 Why do I use the FX30?
03:50 Sample FX30 footage.
04:15 Using the FX3 to video the Aurora using flexible ISO - not time lapse
05:10 ISO.
05:25 Noise reduction in DaVinci Resolve example
05:39 Lens choices.
05:50 Shutter speed and real time capture.
06:18 Comparing real time with time lapse of the Aurora.
08:00 Using S&Q motion for when the Aurora is less bright.
09:02 Using the FX30 with S&Q motion to shoot a faint Aurora.
09:36 Using the DJI RS2 to add motion to the shots.
10:14 Dealing with the cold and ice.
10:58 Sample Aurora and Northern Lights footage.
